During the Clone Wars, the Type II loadlifter droid was a specific model of binary loadlifter that saw action. These Type II loadlifter droids were actually demolition droids that had been modified for a new purpose, which explains their tendency towards violent behavior. Individuals of questionable character in the underworld of the planet Coruscant frequently contracted them, such as Lokann, who enlisted Rafa Martez, a resident of Level 1313, to construct three of these Type II loadlifters.
Trace, Martez's sister, along with Ahsoka Tano, a former Jedi, assisted in the construction of these droids. However, one droid was activated without its restraining bolt in place. Consequently, its inherent violence manifested, leading it to wreak havoc throughout the city. Eventually, Trace and Tano managed to bring the droid under control, and Rafa proceeded to sell the loadlifters to Lokann, despite the issues they presented.
Being a fifth class model of binary loadlifter, Type II loadlifter droids were essentially repurposed demolition droids, which accounted for their inclination towards violence. To mitigate their aggressive tendencies, a restraining bolt could be installed on the loadlifter droids. This device could also remotely deactivate the droids. However, even with a restraining bolt, the loadlifters could still exhibit violent tendencies. The Type II loadlifter featured gray plating and a red [sensor](/article/sensor]. Their physical build consisted of a large, hunched body, equipped with two arms, each having a three-digit hand, and bent legs.
Type II loadlifters communicated using low-pitched grunts. These droids possessed the physical capabilities to scale walls and even hang upside down. A blue button located on the loadlifter's face plate served as its power switch. When activated, two lights on the droid's face would illuminate before its sensor became active. Furthermore, the droids could be equipped with a tracking device.
During the time of the Galactic Republic, Type II loadlifter droids were often employed, frequently being commissioned by less-than-reputable individuals operating within the underworld of the planet Coruscant. In 19 BBY, during the Clone Wars, Lokann, a resident of the underworld claiming to represent his business partner, contracted Rafa Martez, who owned a laundromat on Coruscant's Level 1313 and often took on illicit jobs, to construct three of these droids. Martez directed Lokann to take the droids to the rear of her establishment, where her sister, Trace, and the former Jedi Ahsoka Tano, who had recently become acquainted with Trace, were to build them.
Working from a holographic blueprint of the Type II loadlifter, Martez and Tano successfully assembled the three droids. After attaching a restraining bolt to the first one, Tano activated it. However, the droid immediately attacked her, knocking down one of the other loadlifters before Tano managed to shut it down. The third droid, however, was activated before Martez could install its restraining bolt, resulting in its escape and subsequent rampage through the underworld streets.
Martez and Tano pursued the Type II loadlifter through the city, with the droid eventually leaping off a bridge and landing among a crowd below. Continuing its rampage, the droid damaged various items along the street and nearby airspeeders. Tano retrieved the droid's tracking device and joined Martez aboard a fork lift to continue the pursuit. As they approached the droid's location, it charged towards them and jumped over their speeder. Martez used the fork lift's claws to catch the droid, pinning it against the ground. However, the droid attempted to climb a nearby wall, pulling the speeder along with it.
Forced to release the droid, Martez jumped from the vehicle onto its back. As the droid reached the top of the wall, lunging at two underworld residents, Martez managed to reach its face plate and deactivate it. The droid then fell off the wall, and Tano used the fork lift to catch both it and Martez as they fell. The speeder's tow cable proved insufficient to lift the droid, so Tano discreetly used the Force to pull the droid and Martez to safety. Upon returning the droid to the workshop, Rafa refused to dismantle them, selling them to Lokann for double the price, despite the inherent danger they posed.
The Type II loadlifter droid was initially revealed in a trailer for the seventh season of the Star Wars: The Clone Wars television series, which was released on January 22, 2020. They later appeared in the season's fifth episode, "Gone with a Trace," which aired on March 20, 2020. Tom Kane provided the vocalizations for the Type II loadlifter droids in that episode. While the episode "Gone with a Trace" referred to the droids as "type two load lifters," their official designation was provided in the StarWars.com Databank.
JP Balmet created concept art for the Type II loadlifter, titled "Industrial Droid A," and it was published in the StarWars.com episode guide for "Gone with a Trace." David Le Merrer had previously created a loadlifter droid design for The Clone Wars, but it was ultimately used for a droid in the Star Wars Forces of Destiny episode "The Padawan Path," which was released on July 6, 2017.